PETALING JAYA: The highly anticipated National Automotive Policy (NAP 2014), which will finally be announced today, will include details regarding the exemption of duties on hybrid and electric vehicles.

Officials from the International Trade and Industry Ministry confirmed this during an editors’ briefing on the policy last week.

The tax exemption, implemented under Budget 2011 and officially ended on Dec 31, 2013, saw a spike in sales for hybrid vehicles during that period.

According to data by the Malaysian Automotive Association (MAA), sales of hybrid vehicles were negligible before the exemption with just 322 units recorded in 2010. This changed dramatically in 2011, with sales surging to 8,403 units.

This doubled to 15,355 units last year as more hybrid models were launched in the market.